Urban University Interface.com

The Land Use Code Committee started as a code simplification project in December of 2008.  As the economy continued to slow development down, an urgency of concern  to grease the development skids started to unfold.   Adding to planned changes in the parking code, development protocol, and rewriting and reworking many parts of the land use code, more urban oriented issues were thrust into the picture drawing new attention to the adopted Infill District and a downtown urban overlay district .  Ideas for this urban overlay district, coined the UOD came to light after the Mayor’s January address, when he proclaimed that “…no economic development project is more important to our City’s future than downtown…” This kind of overlays are occurring all over the country.  You can see a sample in Maryland’s, Columbia Downtown Overlay. Tucson’s planning commission will studying implementation starting in April, targeting a public hearing possibly in June.  The objective is to establish an enabling ordinance for the UOD target areas.  The City hopes that the UOD concept will help implements the downtownLINKS project  which is centered around the final development at the terminus of Aviation Corridor, that dead ends downtown.  It now planned to wind through the Warehouse District Masterplan as it finally makes it way towards I-10.  The UOD concept has a lot of potential to direct development where it needs to go.  It can also potentially enable urbanization overlays around the University and along the new modern street car link.  City Planner, John Beal is looking at the University Area Plan.  That plan is overdue for a bold update that can address a transition strategy between the University and its surrounding community.